2026-04-06
Ephesians 4:23 AMPC
We are three-part beings: spirit, soul, and body. When we make Jesus Lord of our lives, our spirit receives healing from spiritual death. But there are still two areas that need Christ’s healing touch: our souls (mind, emotions, and will) and our physical bodies. God’s Word teaches us that physical health and mental health are irrevocably linked. “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7 NKJV). What we think about ourselves is inevitably what we become. Unhealthy thinking produces unhealthy living.
John wrote: “I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers” (3 John 1:2 NKJV). For any area where our souls are sick – whether it be low self-esteem, negative thoughts, or destructive habits – the Word of God is the answer to nourishing us into a balanced and healthy state.
The majority of Satan’s attacks begin in the mind. He uses wrong thoughts and images in our minds to lead us away from God’s best. The only way to counteract this is to stand on God’s Word and allow His healthy thoughts to permeate our thinking daily. Thoughts of fear can be replaced with thoughts of faith. Thoughts of lack can be replaced with thoughts of provision. Thoughts of failure and depression can be replaced with thoughts of success and joy.
How does this happen? Paul answered: “Be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude], and put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God’s image” (Ephesians 4:23-24 AMPC).
Soul food: Jer 31-32; Luke 24:13-18; Ps 32; Prov 9:10-16
2026-04-05
Matthew 28:6 KJV
One day your heart will give a final pulse, and your lungs empty a final breath. And barring the return of Christ, you will die. The psalmist asked, “What man can live and not see death? Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave?” (Psalm 89:48 NKJV). Young and old, good and bad, rich and poor; neither gender is spared; no class is exempt. “No one has power over the time of their death” (Ecclesiastes 8:8 NIV).
The geniuses, the rich, the poor – no one outruns or outsmarts it. Julius Caesar died. Elvis died. John Kennedy died. Princess Diana died. We all will die. We won’t escape death. The finest surgeon might enhance your life but can’t eliminate your death. The Hebrew writer was blunt: “People are destined to die once” (Hebrews 9:27 NIV). Exercise all you want. Eat nothing but healthy food, and pop fists full of vitamins. Stay out of the sun, away from alcohol, and off drugs. Do your best to stay alive, and still, you will die.
Death seems like such a dead end until we read Jesus’ resurrection story: “He is not here; for He is risen, as He said…Go quickly and tell His disciples… He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him… So they went out quickly… to bring His disciples word… Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him” (Matthew 28:6-17 NKJV).
For the redeemed child of God, death is not the end but the beginning of a glorious life in heaven that will have no end.
Soul food: 1 Cor 15; Luke 24:1-12
2026-04-04
John 19:30 NKJV
In Old Testament times, you received forgiveness from God by bringing a sacrificial lamb to the altar, where a priest would shed its blood and offer it as atonement. The first person in Scripture to do this was Cain’s brother, Abel (See Genesis 4:4). When Solomon dedicated his magnificent temple, he sacrificed one-hundred-and-twenty-thousand sheep and twenty-two-thousand oxen as a sacrifice for the entire nation. In the Old Testament Tabernacle, the sacrificial fire was never allowed to go out; it had to be kept burning. The Israelites carried it with them on their journey through the wilderness, and it’s been estimated that between Gethsemane and Easter, no less than one hundred thousand lambs died, literally turning the Kidron Stream red.
However, not one fluid ounce of the blood that was shed could atone for our sins. They were simply rolled forward, waiting for a lamb whose sacrifice would end all sacrifices, a priest whose finished work would atone for sin once and for all. And that’s what happened when Jesus cried, “It is finished.” In Hebrew, the phrase literally means “Paid in full.” At that moment, the curtain in the temple that separated the people from God was torn from top to bottom.
As a result, we can now go at any time where only one man could go one day a year – into the presence of God, knowing we’ll be loved, accepted, seen through the blood of Christ, and deemed righteous. With that in mind, “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV).
Soul food: Jer 28-30; Luke 23:50-56; Ps 72:12-20; Prov 9:7-9
2026-04-03
Romans 5:20 NKJV
Just minutes before his final breath, Jesus cried out, “Tetelestai!” from the cross. In English, it is translated as “It is finished.” It was the same word that was written on receipts in New Testament times, indicating that a debt had been paid in full. Jesus’ death on the cross was the final installment on sin. The entire debt for every sinner who comes to Him for salvation has been paid in full at Calvary.
Paul wrote: “Where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” Did you catch it? “Much more!” The mercy bank is never closed. And there are never insufficient funds. The supply of grace is always greater than the demand of sin. The split second we confess our sin, a miraculous transaction happens. All our sin is transferred to Christ’s account and paid in full. But as good as that is, it’s only half the gospel.
There’s a second transfer that takes place. All His righteousness is credited to our account, and God says, “Let’s call it even!” Paul explained it this way: “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them… For He made Him [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:19, 21 NKJV).
To be “in Christ” means we stand in His righteousness rather than our own. So, when we stand before God, we won’t have to account for our sin, because it was already accounted for at the cross. The Father will see the righteousness of His Son that has been credited to our account.
Soul food: Isa 53; Luke 23:26-49; Ps 22
2026-04-02
Matthew 9:38 NKJV
When Martin Luther began the work that became the Great Reformation, his friend Myconius said, “I can best help where I am. I will remain and pray while you toil.” Then one night, Myconius dreamed that Jesus approached him and showed him His hands and feet, wounded by His crucifixion. He looked into the eyes of his Saviour and heard Jesus say to him, “Follow Me.” Jesus led him to a mountaintop and pointed eastward. Myconius looked and saw a plain stretching away from the horizon. It was dotted with thousands and thousands of sheep, and one man was trying to shepherd the great flock. Myconius recognized him as his friend, Martin Luther. The Saviour then pointed westward, and Myconius saw a great field of standing corn, with only one reaper trying to harvest it all. The lonely labourer was obviously exhausted, but he persisted. Myconius recognized the reaper to be Martin Luther.
“It is not enough that I should pray,” he said when he awoke. “The sheep must be shepherded, and the field of corn must be reaped. Here am I; send me.” He immediately sought out Luther and volunteered to serve in whatever capacity Luther desired.
The Bible says, “When [Jesus] saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion… Then He said to His disciples, ‘The harvest truly is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest'” (Matthew 9:36-38 NKJV). The only “prayer request” Jesus ever made was for labourers to go into the harvest field. And He’s calling you to be one of them.
Soul food: Jer 25-27; Luke 23:1-25; Ps 72:1-11; Prov 9:1-6
2026-04-01
Job 32:8 NIV
Elihu suddenly spoke up in Job chapter thirty-two. It’s apparent he had been present all along, but he held his peace because he believed Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were older and wiser than he was. “I am young in years, and you are old; that is why I was fearful, not daring to tell you what I know” (Job 32:6 NIV).
After hearing the long and meaningless discourses of Job’s three older friends, Elihu suddenly felt emboldened to speak: “It is the spirit in a person, the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding. It is not only the old who are wise… Therefore I say: Listen to me; I too will tell you what I know” (Job 32:8-10 NIV). Then he spoke nonstop for the next six chapters. He no longer saw himself as a loser in the game of comparison.
Feelings of inferiority are generated by comparing yourself with others. Or you go to the other extreme and finish up with a sense of superiority. That’s why you should never play the comparison game.
Question: Can you recall a time when you felt so inadequate that you kept quiet and refused to speak up, even though you had a worthwhile thought or idea? You must realize that it is not your ability that determines your success, but “the breath of the Almighty, that gives [you] understanding.” The secret of success is drawing daily on God’s enabling power. When you become persuaded of this truth, you will be able to take on new levels of risk and responsibility without fear of failure.
Soul food: Deut 16:1-8; Luke 22:39-71; Matt 26:17-28
